In his first Apostolic Exhortation titled Dilexis Te (“I have loved you”), Pope Leo XIV made an urgent call to Catholics to return to the tradition of almsgiving, at a time when it seems to be abandoned.
"I would like to close by saying something about almsgiving, which nowadays is not looked upon favorably even among believers. Not only is it rarely practiced, but it is even at times disparaged,” Pope Leo writes.
Although the Pontiff makes it very clear that "the most important way to help the disadvantaged is to assist them in finding a good job," he writes that "on the other hand, where this is not possible, we cannot risk abandoning others to the fate of lacking the necessities for a dignified life. Consequently, almsgiving remains, for the time being, a necessary means of contact, encounter and empathy with those less fortunate."
According to data from Convergent, a non-for-profit tracker, almsgiving in the Catholic Church has declined both because of the decreasing number of Catholics and the fact that younger generations prefer to make more "strategic donations" rather than help directly.
"Almsgiving,” the apostolic exhortation explains, “at least offers us a chance to halt before the poor, to look into their eyes, to touch them and to share something of ourselves with them. In any event, almsgiving, however modest, brings a touch of pietas into a society otherwise marked by the frenetic pursuit of personal gain. In the words of the Book of Proverbs: ‘Those who are generous are blessed, for they share their bread with the poor’ (22:9).”
Pope Leo then highlights the importance of almsgiving as a fundamental way of creating proper Catholic habits: “Our love and our deepest convictions need to be continually cultivated, and we do so through our concrete actions. Remaining in the realm of ideas and theories, while failing to give them expression through frequent and practical acts of charity, will eventually cause even our most cherished hopes and aspirations to weaken and fade away. For this very reason, we Christians must not abandon almsgiving.”
"Whatever form it may take,” Pope Leo concludes, “almsgiving will touch and soften our hardened hearts. It will not solve the problem of world poverty, yet it must still be carried out, with intelligence, diligence and social responsibility. For our part, we need to give alms as a way of reaching out and touching the suffering flesh of the poor.”